Cuts ‘will perpetuate two-tier school system’

THE Government has been warned of further education cuts widening a gap in a two-tier school system which Sinn Féin claims benefits wealthier families at the expense of students from poorer backgrounds.

The party was responding to the publication of league tables of college progression that showed students at fee-paying schools are far more likely to have secured a place in a third-level college this year.

The tables combine information supplied to colleges from the Central Applications Office (CAO) about the school of origin of new entrants with State Examinations Commission figures for numbers sitting the Leaving Certificate in each school.

The third-level participation divide is most apparent in Dublin, where 90% or more of students at all but a handful of 35 fee-paying schools were accepted into courses. By comparison, Sinn Féin education spokesperson Seán Crowe pointed out that only around 40% of students at schools in many working-class areas of the capital, Cork and Limerick, made the transition.

“Grinds, one-to-one teaching supports, smaller class size and state-of-the-art teaching aids all give an unfair advantage to wealthier students on their path to third-level education. The range of cuts being imposed on our primary and post-primary schools will make progression more difficult and lead to even more barriers for those on low and middle incomes,” he said.

Mr Crowe said the addition of cuts in supports at third-level and a likely hike in student fees will all perpetuate a two-tier system where access to college will be restricted to those who can afford supports needed to prosper.

Education Minister Ruairi Quinn is under pressure to further cut the number of teachers whose salaries are state-funded at schools which supplement their staffing with fee income.

The Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland said league tables focused solely on college entry, present a distorted picture of the work of schools and put pressure on teachers to abandon aspects of holistic education that do not help improve rankings.